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It's my happy place.

Many moons ago, I ventured to one of my favorite happy places to celebrate my birthday. Twas a solo retreat meant to enable me to enjoy some sand, surf, and solitude as I began a new trip around the sun.

After several years of not doing so, this year I resurrected this activity. A month ago on what’s known as The Best Day of My Year, I ventured to one of my favorite beaches and spent several glorious days there all by myself.

Happy birthday to me!

Beachin’ Birthday: Part III (the Denouement)

I was supposed to write this post about two weeks ago (I think) but Life and The Adulting gets in the way. I hate that. Anyhoo, here I am. These are me cheating a bit, because the doors were open, but I digress.

One of the best parts of my trip was just walking around the town, sniffing the salt air, letting the sea breeze help propel me down the street. I popped in and out of so many shops. Old favorites were gone. New favorites were discovered. Tried and true loves still thrive and I was so happy to see them.

One of those stores is Gidget’s Gadgets, a fun walk back in time through vinyl records, toys from when I was young and for those who came several decades before me. I bought a Captain’s Log Star Trek journal there this time. Have a good time at the beach? Make it so.

Another is one of my all-time favorites: Browseabout Books. They have an awesome bookstore, but also a huge area of Crane papers and greeting cards you can’t find anywhere else and other fun home and stationery things. I spent a LOT of time (and money) in this store. Two photos in this batch from this store: one of the bookstore part door; and another featuring part of the store’s mural with beach-inspired titled book spines, like Gull, Interrupted. Not only do I love this town and this bookstore, I love literary and beach puns combined!

A new store (to me anyway — not sure how long it’s been there) is Stoneworks Lapidary: Fossils by the Sea. The one door photo features the greeter you first meet upon entering. OK, people. What kind of dinosaur is that?

As much as I love the town, and doors, I go to spend time with Ocean. We had a lot of quality time. I so love her that I bought a wave ring at one of the jewelry stores in town. I’ll wear that on my left-hand ring finger. She never lets me down. She never disappoints. She’s always there. She’s always moving. She’s always reminding me of the ebb and flow of life. I do believe she’s my one true love.

Not long now until I visit again — day trips and a longer trip that’s a harbinger of larger life change. I. Can’t. Wait.